Play it safe in hot, humid weather — it can overheat the heart.

The human body is built for heat. It works best at an internal temperature of 98� F and has intricate mechanisms to maintain that temperature. Yet hot weather, especially those triple-H days — hazy, hot, and humid — can strain the heart and the body.

Your cells produce heat in the process of converting sugar to energy. When the air temperature rises, your body doesn't have the option of generating less heat. You can shed clothes, but you can't get past your birthday suit. That leaves two ...

Postprandial hypotension can show up as dizziness or falling after a meal.

Do you sometimes feel dizzy or lightheaded after eating a meal? If so, you could have a common condition called postprandial hypotension (the term loosely translates to low blood pressure after eating) that affects up to one-third of older men and women.

Digestion is a complicated job that requires precise coordination between the digestive, nervous, and circulatory systems. An early task is rerouting extra blood to the stomach and small intestine. To compensate for this diversion, the heart beats faster and harder while blood vessels far from the ...

A weighty proposal calls for the FDA to help Americans shake the salt habit.

Help may be on the way for cutting back on salt in a way your taste buds won't notice but your heart and arteries will appreciate. In a long-awaited study and report commissioned by Congress, the Institute of Medicine has recommended that the FDA decrease the amount of salt in commercially prepared food. The proposal aims to rein in the overabundance of sodium (with chloride, one of two components of table salt) in the American diet. Too much sodium helps usher in high blood pressure ...

 

Symptoms, heart measurements guide the need for mitral valve surgery.

The heart is a marvel of biological engineering. Four strategically placed valves ensure that every contraction propels blood forward with little or no backflow. On the right side of the heart, the tricuspid and pulmonary valves direct the orderly flow of blood; on the left side, the mitral and aortic valves. Although all four valves are essential for good health, we focus on the mitral valve in this article.

If the mitral valve is damaged or becomes misaligned, it can't close completely with each heartbeat. Some blood spurts backward ...

Researchers found that when people having conversations with their doctors about impending bypass surgery were given a recording of the consultation, they had a better understanding of the procedure.

The FDA has approved the sale of a generic version of the angiotensin-receptor blocker medication losartan, and generic versions of two other ARBs may soon follow.

Brief reports on heart failure and avoiding rehospitalization, the dangerous combination of prehypertension and prediabetes, and a warning about eating Dead Sea salt.

  After I had an abnormal electrocardiogram, my doctor wants me to have a nuclear stress test to check my arteries for any blockages. (I also have a left side bundle block.) What noninvasive test would give as much information (or almost as much) as a nuclear stress test? I have had many scans, for this and that, so I would like to limit my exposure to radiation if possible.  

I have rheumatoid arthritis, and my doctor wants me to take prednisone for it. Will this drug be bad for my blood pressure, which is already high?

Q. A year ago, I had an orchiectomy for prostate cancer; my PSA is now 0.74. Not long afterward, I had two cardiac stents implanted. I still have some angina and shortness of breath. I started Ranexa a couple of weeks ago, which helps my angina. Do you have any suggestions for my heart since I no longer make testosterone, which I understand helps protect men's hearts and arteries?

A. In men with prostate cancer, testosterone plays opposing roles. On the negative side of the ledger, it fuels the growth of prostate cancer cells, helping them grow, divide, and sometimes ...